Megyn Kelly said that The Walt Disney Company’s emphasis on “wokeness” has cost it nearly $1 billion at the box office due to “flops” such as “Lightyear,” “The Little Mermaid” and “Elemental.”
Kelly devoted a segment of Thursday’s SiriusXM podcast “The Megyn Kelly Show” to a YouTube report that claimed the Mouse House lost $900 million on its last eight feature films, several of which include prominent “woke” characters.
“The people are not buying this content,” Kelly said during her podcast on Thursday.
“They don’t want this content.”
Kelly noted that media giants Disney, Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery have all seen their heads of diversity leave their jobs.
In late June, Latondra Newton left her post as chief diversity officer at Disney.
During Newton’s tenure, Disney landed in the middle of the nation’s culture wars by introducing gay, lesbian, transgender, non-binary, and other minority characters into its animated series and films.
The company instituted a slew of other changes, such as outfitting Minnie Mouse with a blue pantsuit instead of her traditional red and white polka-dot dress.
A short time later, Netfix’s head of inclusion, Vernā Myers, stepped down, though the position is expected to be refilled, according to the Wrap.
Warner Bros. Discovery reportedly fired Karen Horne, who was the company’s vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion in North America.
Horne’s dismissal was first reported by the Los Angeles Times.
A Warner Bros. Discovery spokesperson told The Post that Asif Sadiq, the company’s chief global diversity officer, will remain in his job.
Warner Bros. Discovery also plans to hire someone to fill a DEI-related position in North America, according to a spokesperson for the firm.
“Bit by bit all these media companies and big tech companies are eliminating their heads of diversity, because it’s just a wasted position where somebody just glorifies their wokeness,” Kelly said on Thursday.
“So it’s failing.”
She added: “Hopefully they’ll (Disney) learn their lesson.”
The Post has sought comment from Disney, Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery.
Kelly relied on data from the YouTube commentator known as “Valliant Renegade,” who covers the intersection of show business and finance.
In a recent video, the YouTuber claimed that Disney’s last eight studio releases have failed to generate box office dollars that would offset the considerable expenditures in production, marketing, publicity and advertising.
Those feature films include “Lightyear,” “The Little Mermaid,” “Elemental” and “Strange World.”
“Lightyear,” a spinoff of Pixar’s popular “Toy Story” films, featured an LGBTQ character who shared same-sex kissing scenes in the film.
“Lightyear” generated $226.4 million globally at the box office, but cost $200 million to produce.
The casting of Halle Bailey, an African American actress, as the lead character Ariel in its recently released live-action remake of “The Little Mermaid” also stirred controversy.
The film has grossed $525 million, but cost $250 million to produce.
The 1989 animated classic grossed about $250 million.
“Strange World,” an animated film, featured a gay teen romance — a first for the entertainment giant.
The film generated just $28 million globally.
It was estimated to have lost some $150 million.
